What uses do thyratron tubes have in radar and particle accelerators?

Thyratron tubes are gas-filled electron tubes that function as high-speed switches, providing a trigger effect that allows them to control the start of a large current flow. Because they can handle significant power—sometimes reaching up to 40 megawatts and switching thousands of amperes—they are essential in specialized high-voltage applications.123

In radar systems, thyratrons are used in pulse modulators to facilitate the rapid switching required for generating high-power pulses. Similarly, in particle accelerators, these tubes serve as critical switching components to manage the high-voltage energy necessary for accelerating particles. Their ability to initiate a discharge in a few hundred-millionths of a second makes them particularly well-suited for these demanding electronic environments.13